Piyale Pasha Mosque

This unusual mosque in the Kasımpaşa district was built by Mimar Sinan in the 1570s for the admiral Piyale Pasha, and it departs from the classical single-dome plan in favour of a broad hall roofed by six equal domes. The multi-domed layout, more common in early Ottoman and Bursa architecture, gives the interior an unexpected rhythm supported on central piers. A minaret set in the middle of the façade is another rarity. Once close to the naval arsenal on the Golden Horn, the mosque reflects the founder's seafaring role and Sinan's experiment.